Common People, Uncommon Cars

(30-05-2011, 08:20 PM)redcorolla95 Wrote: There will be more of such stories.
Singapore has a higher HNWI density than cities in the US e.g. New York, LA, San Francisco, etc.

In terms of density and % of population, I agree that this is very true. So I guess it makes it all the more "obvious" on our small island when you flaunt your wealth, as it's m ore congested here and quite a number of eyeballs can see your new souped-up ride! I've often noticed drivers in their noisy sports cars revving their engines in Raffles Place or near City Hall area, just to catch the attention of as many passers-by as possible.

I find this behaviour particularly odious, as I do not understand why these attention-seekers must do this.

There's just something about sports cars and expensive souped-up cars which gives me the impression that their owners are materialistic and (sorry) hedonistic. Just my personal views though - no offence to anyone here.

There seems to be more upmarket cars on the road nowadays as only the rich can afford cars now.
There probably should not be any negative judgement made on owners of expensive cars unless we know how they are personally.
With that being said, it does seem a bit wasteful to spend a couple of hundred thousand on a 1-2 hour commute daily.

Expensive cars or 20year old pick-ups, everyone still gets caught up in the peak hour crawl.
Nothing the 500hp performance car can do to change that. The motorbike will whizz though while the rest wait.

(31-05-2011, 11:53 PM)Big Toe Wrote: There seems to be more upmarket cars on the road nowadays as only the rich can afford cars now.
There probably should not be any negative judgement made on owners of expensive cars unless we know how they are personally.
With that being said, it does seem a bit wasteful to spend a couple of hundred thousand on a 1-2 hour commute daily.

Yes I do notice a lot more up-market cars on the roads now, including sports cars. BMWs and Audis are also being driven by increasingly younger people, I've noted.

Not sure what it takes to become to rich and successful. Yeah the usual mantra of save, invest and insure which I already do, but I don't feel myself getting very much richer. It can be quite discouraging at times, when you see the amount of wealth being flaunted daily.

Sorry for the rant! Haha....

(01-06-2011, 11:01 AM)Musicwhiz Wrote: Not sure what it takes to become to rich and successful. Yeah the usual mantra of save, invest and insure which I already do, but I don't feel myself getting very much richer. It can be quite discouraging at times, when you see the amount of wealth being flaunted daily.

Sorry for the rant! Haha....

Flaunting of wealth does not imply rich.
In life, there is always some amount of luck that is required to achieve any success, especially getting rich.
However, by working hard and wisely, a person will be able to increase the number of opportunities that he can get rich.

天时，地利，人和。

We can only control part of 地利 and 人和. However, if the stars are aligned when you are working with your best effort, success will come automatically.

Life is never fair but if we give up on trying, life will become miserable.

(01-06-2011, 11:36 AM)yeokiwi Wrote: However, by working hard and wisely, a person will be able to increase the number of opportunities that he can get rich.

天时，地利，人和。

We can only control part of 地利 and 人和. However, if the stars are aligned when you are working with your best effort, success will come automatically.

Life is never fair but if we give up on trying, life will become miserable.

Hi yeokiwi,

Thanks for your encouraging words. I shall continue to strive and work hard and to continue to save, invest and insure.

By Working hard, a person in Singapore can get by comfortably.
But to be wealthy and never to have to worry about living expenses, it takes more than that.
Having the right knowledge, being at the right place and taking calculated risk(s) is critical.

Most people are quite happy to get by working for someone and they would not want to risk their time/effort/money to do anything else.
But there is always a more rewarding but more uncertain path that one can take.
We all know a certain guy from the former wallstraits forum who did quite well for himself quitting his bank job and setting up his own co.
and *ahem* now giving talks about investments(Property/landbanking/timing the market). For what it is worth, he has made it.

(01-06-2011, 11:05 PM)Big Toe Wrote: We all know a certain guy from the former wallstraits forum who did quite well for himself quitting his bank job and setting up his own co.
and *ahem* now giving talks about investments(Property/landbanking/timing the market). For what it is worth, he has made it.

Well I have nothing against people who are entrepreneurial and who can successfully run their own businesses. I fact I will tip my hat off to them with great respect!

But if we are talking about that particular ex-forummer, the problem was not one of monetary or financial astuteness, but more of an attitude issue. And I guess we also do not need to go into too much detail on behavioural patterns, for they were (and are still) apparent for everyone to see, even though he may be running very successful seminars.

The fortune teller business is super lucrative... few years back, Clement chiang got into some issues with falsified financial qualification.

I heard this on radio the other day: The rich man is not who has the most, but one who need the least.

Nowhere is this more true than for Mr. Buffett. CNA recently screen a documentary (which was shown much earlier on CNBC) on Warren and its amazing how he still staying in the same house and driving the same car even though his wealth probably can afford him a much bigger house and flashier car. Even the company HQ is modest in comparison to the assets it managed.

(02-06-2011, 12:15 PM)lonewolf Wrote: I heard this on radio the other day: The rich man is not who has the most, but one who need the least.

Nowhere is this more true than for Mr. Buffett. CNA recently screen a documentary (which was shown much earlier on CNBC) on Warren and its amazing how he still staying in the same house and driving the same car even though his wealth probably can afford him a much bigger house and flashier car. Even the company HQ is modest in comparison to the assets it managed.

Very true. But Warren Buffett is more of a unique "species", haha. How many of us can truly reach that stage of "nirvana" where we can disregard our friends' and relatives' possessions?

Even though I do enjoy living my own life according to my own rules and principles, I still need to benchmark against peers to ensure I continue to strive hard for success and not get lazy. Sometimes, I also do wonder if the amount of cash I have is anomalous with other couples my age (with a kid). When I see couples buying 2nd property and/or a car, it always gives me the impression they have a lot of wealth!